Number Two
by JKrlin
Summary: Kid Flash was too busy to watch over Jump City. The H.I.V.E. Five would have a grand time with no more heroes in town. However, there was already a certain thief enjoying the Titans' absence. What's a Red X going to do when some rookie baddies try to take over his city?
1. Prologue

Red X probably shouldn't have sent that cake to the Brotherhood of Evil. Hell, it was more likely they'd throw it away rather than even have a lackey taste test it. Nevertheless, he felt that he had to show his appreciation somehow.

It wasn't the first time the Titans left town. Of course they always left a replacement to keep an eye on things. Some British heroine or demigods from the heavens. Things is that they were never as good as the regular Titans. They knew the game, but they hardly knew a thing about the playing field. The replacements were always late to the party. X always disappeared into the shadows before they could catch up. Easy pickings whenever the kids weren't around.

Except for that Kid Flash guy. Red X had to be serious when he held down the fort. But he was off in France or something helping out more of those Honorary Titans. If X's insider was right, Flashy Junior ought to be busy for a while. Titans East bailed out of Jump City, too, to fight of the Brotherhood.

The Brotherhood not only gave the Titans a gang of old coots out for world domination, but they also recruited a good majority of the local baddies into their cause. So, that left Jump all out of heroic messiahs and any villain fests, leaving the city ripe for some honest thieving.

Then those snot-nosed brats came into town. The H.I.V.E. Five, making their comeback.

They were all a bunch of idiots. Control Freak had more class than these bozos. More importantly, they were being loud. Too loud, breaking into the banks, techno warehouses, and transport vans without any discretion. X was a professional thief. The Five were tearing up everything like the city was their playground.

Jump City wasn't their sandbox. If anything, it was _his_.

Red X got into the history museum easy enough. The usual night guards happened to find a little extra cash to take their families out for dinner, carelessly leaving the rookie all alone. X took care of him, entered the most likely exhibits the Five would heist and laid his traps accordingly…

There they are. Gizmo, the brattiest, deactivated the security system in the Egyptian section. Little did he know that X was ready to set off the silent alarm at any time. The cops would be here eventually, but there'd be enough time for him to have a little fun before then.

He leaned against the shadows in a dark corner. No one would be looking for him. They were too busy stuffing as many artifacts and relics as possible into ceremonial jars, hollering off jokes to each other. Especially Billy Numerous, and his numerous replicates.

Their leader, Jinx, didn't bother herself with grabbing as much as she could in her arms. She kept a pendant to herself, a pretty little thing that would fetch a fine price with X's usual dealers.

"You guys done?" she called out, eyeing her toy with a smirk.

See-More, along with the rest of the boys, were all hugging three or four golden jars and gathered around their leader. "All ready, Jinx," he drawled out. She walked slowly toward the exit without a word, the rest of the Five following her whilst chatting.

Jinx waved her hand, dark pink arcs of energy flowing forward to open the doors. However, X made his move, pressing a button on the attachments on his wrist.

All of a sudden, a big red X materialized in the middle of the doorway, blocking the Five's way. Each of them let out a yell of surprise, save for Jinx, who simply narrowing her eyes.

"The heck is with the big, fat X?" Gizmo hissed distastefully. A cannon of sorts folded out of his jetpack and charged up a blast to burn away the gooey substance. The slow humming of accumulating energy helped disguise the noise of a different type of armament.

"Hey, Billy, why's that hi-ro-glyph-en thingamajig glowing?"

"Hmm? What, Billy, this X-looking thing?"

Five voices cried out simultaneously. From what Red X saw, Kyd Wykkyd never made any kind of vocal sound. X was pretty sure he didn't even groan in revulsion at the sticky goop restraining the whole team together with their loot on the floor. Everyone else sure did, some spewing out rather obscene swears. Who knew the youngest of them all knew a grand multitude of curses.

"See-More!" Jinx cried out with barely contained fury. "Eyes wide!"

The green helmeted teen fought against the red substance and quickly adjusted the settings for his namesake.

_Looks like that's my cue_.

Right before See-More's eye could pinpoint their assailant's location, it was covered with its very own X. His entire face was enclosed in the shape, including his mouth. He yelped and would have fallen flat on his back if not for the rest of the slop keeping him up. Gizmo, Mammoth, and Billy succumbed to similar fates. Billy tried to replicate himself, but his clones could not escape the gasp of the red goo.

"You kids should know better not to be out after curfew." X sauntered casually over toward them. Jinx and Kyd Wykkyd glared in his direction. The rest were still struggling.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Jinx hissed as the black attired thief filched the pendant off the floor.

"X," was the smug answer. "Red X." He picked up the staff Kid Wykkyd had been holding. Neither object was damaged.

"Last I checked, you weren't a do-gooder," Jinx pointed out, still with her distasteful expression. "I thought you were with the Brotherhood of Evil these days."

"Ah, the pay sucked," X said simply, "and the whole 'rule the world' vibe they've got going on, just isn't my scene."

She scoffed. Kyd Wykkyd continued his own apathetic stare and had ceased his own attempt to escape the red confinement.

"Besides," X walked up to Jinx and caressed her cheek, "if I hadn't left the Brotherhood, I wouldn't have met Ms. Fortune here for myself, wouldn't I?"

X had to wipe away the saliva that was spat on his mask.

"When we get out of this," Jinx declared lowly, "you're going to regret crossing with me."

This time, X roughly grabbed Jinx's chin and leaned closer to her face. She was startled but quickly kept her face guarded again.

"Jinx, right? You seem to have a good thing going with your little H.I.V.E. Five team, but Jump is _my _city. Go find another town to pillage. Maybe Keystone, or Central. I don't care where. Bottom line: you stay in my city…"

Red X released his grasp and formed a fist. He placed it under Jinx's chin. A second later, the X on the gloved hand expanded, giving two solid cuts across her cheeks. They weren't too deep, but a band aid definitely won't be able to fix it.

Jinx grunted, and she glowered at X with the greatest amount of hate and venom directed at him in a while. Everyone began to move more animatedly at her slight bellow. Kyd Wykkyd remained outwardly indifferent with his unwavering gaze.

"… I'm going to have as much fun as I want with all of you." For curiosity's sake, Red X gave the Batman wannabe the hardest punch he could into his gut. Sadly, not a sound was made from him. To add onto the unfortunate result, Kyd Wykkyd swished his arm whilst holding his cape. The restrictive goop began to cut away as he attacked. In response, Red X hopped back.

"I was wondering when you'd stop playing along," Red X said teasingly.

The escapee stood in a defensive stance momentarily before cutting at the rest of the sludge holding down his companions. He only got Jinx out until Red X connected a kick against the Kyd's face. Jinx immediately followed up with her own attacks that X swiftly dodged.

"You are dead!" Jinx cried out as she darted away from the X shuriken thrown her way.

"No need to lose your temper," Red X said calmly.

Kyd Wykkyd materialized behind him through a black portal, ready to cut off X's head. The sharpened edge of his cape pierced through air. Red X reappeared beside Jinx, successfully delivering a punch that nearly knocked her off her feet. However, she avoided the following punches. She waved her arms down and caused the floor to crack. Red X's foot got caught in one of the narrow gaps. Jinx grinned, ready to land another hit when he hit a button on his belt and fizzled out of existence.

The rest of the Five had been freed by Wykkyd during the pair's fight. Mammoth let out a growl of frustration as Gizmo readjusted his pack to form blasters and those spider-like legs. Red X appeared right between them and connected an electrified X to both of them. The currents shocked them painfully, Mammoth falling over and Gizmo falling back, his fall broken by his now defective jetpack.

"We got you now!" echoed a collective of voices. About a dozen Billys grabbed X before he could teleport again, presenting a clear target for See-More to fire a laser at.

"X marks the spot!" he crackled.

Red X opened his palms. "You don't know the half of it." He fired a blast toward See-More while his other hand activated an X-wrist blade. The Billys on X's left skipped away to avoid getting cut. As for the ones on his right, they were hurled into the line of fire of See-More's misfired laser bolt. As the clones each fell to the floor, X sprinted right for the disoriented cyclops.

A hand blocked his punch. Kyd Wykkyd threw another one, defending See-More until he got his senses back. When he did, he shot another laser that Wykkyd and Red X ducked from. It made contact with the ill-fated unintentional target: Mammoth. X gave Wykkyd a kick in his lower body. Mammoth fell over him and See-More, who had been through into the pile at the last second.

"I thought you guys went to school for this kind of stuff," X pointed out, clearly amused as he leaned against a support column. The column, however, suddenly fell apart when X's back gave a little too much pressure. The entire structure crumbled. Red X had to dive to evade the falling rubble.

He got up to see Jinx's frowning face. She probably caused the column to fall. In the corner of his eye, he could see the rest of her team, broken and beaten on the floor.

"You aren't a hero," Jinx said, catching Red X's attention. "You're a thief, just like us. Why are you fighting us?"

A little chuckled escaped X. "Like I said, this is my city, and you kids are tearing it up like you own it. I need to assert my dominance somehow."

"We're not a bunch of kids," she snarled defensively. "We're the H.I.V.E. Five, and –"

"You can't do math. There are six of you in. I'm guessing you flunked that in villain school?"

X teleported away from the pink energy arcs, reappearing right next to Jinx. He leaned forward, whispering into her ear, "How about you ditch these morons and I take you on a little date, Ms. Fortune?"

Jinx wasn't fast enough to counter. See-More already shot X's side. He flew right through a glass display and landed face first.

_Damn. Tougher than I thought._ X received a harsh kick, and another punch that would have gotten his eye real good if he hadn't moved. He retreated but tripped on another crack on the floor. Another teleport would drain his battery too much, so Red X settled with flipping back onto a sarcophagus.

Billy clones multiplied from behind him. Mammoth and Gizmo came from his left, Wykkyd and See-More teleporting on his right, and Jinx came waltzing before him.

Jinx was still bleeding. "I don't care who you are. We're taking over this city. You get in our way, you're a dead man."

"Ain't the first time someone wanted me dead, Miss Fortune." Red X twirled the pendant Jinx had taken earlier in his hand. "Thanks for the distraction, by the way. I'll send you a cake as a thank you gift." X fired an energy-infused projectile toward the shape blocking the door, disintegrating it. "Ciao."

Mere seconds after Red X had teleported away, the police and SWAT teams arrived. Two unfortunate souls had just entered the room.

Jinx didn't even bother to look as she waved her hand and collapsed the doorway. "Kyd Wykkyd. Take us out of here." The mute criminal nodded, raising his cape and engulfing his friends.

Red X reappeared where the H.I.V.E. Five was standing moments before. He had been watching them from the cameras. After erasing all of the footage, he returned and picked up the staff that was previously forgotten. It would take the cops some time to get pass the destroyed entrance anyway, enough time to clean up most of the evidence that X was ever even at the museum.

This was _his_ city, no matter what anybody said. Sure, he didn't want to do a hostile takeover like Slade did a couple years back, but you can't blame a guy for being territorial.

They've improved, a lot. X had to be more careful from now on. He'd still have fun, though. _Tons_ of fun.

Always gotta look out for Number One. Gotta remember that.


	2. Lick Your Wounds

"Are you done yet?" Jinx snapped from where she sat.

"Easy Boss Lady," Billy tried to placate. He failed, of course. The H.I.V.E. Five knew enough about their team leader to give her some space when she was this angry. "Almost done."

"Just hurry up." Jinx closed her eyes.

Billy put the cap back on the bottle and began to put away the medical supplies. He didn't know where See-More and Kyd Wykkyd found that healing jelly, nor did he care, but it did do its job well. There were no traces of her cuts.

"All done, Boss Lady." Immediately, Jinx got up and was out of the infirmary in a split second.

The anger was still there. The embarrassment, the resentment, but she tried to push that aside for now. If she wanted to get some payback, she'd have to prepare a plan, and a lot of information.

The rest of the boys were in the living room, specially customized to meet the needs and preferences of the former H.I.V.E. students. Yellow and purple painted the walls and floors. See-More and Mammoth were playing some random race car game with a Billy clone. Kyd Wykkyd was brooding… understandably as that's his favorite past time, in the corner. Gizmo was fiddling with his jetpack and occasionally swerving his chair toward a computer.

Jinx went right for Gizmo, twisting his seat around so that he was trapped between her and the expansive keyboard.

"What did you find on him?" she went straight to the point.

Gizmo sighed, more out of exhaustion than anything. Innovations were one thing. It was always a chore to repair his inventions. "The Titans don't have much on 'em."

"What do you mean? They made the suit, didn't they?"

"Yeah, but their tin can Cyborg is better at software defenses than I thought." Gizmo turned and fiddled with the computer. "All of their files started to delete themselves when I got in. I managed to save some of them, but the stuff we have on Red X doesn't tell us anything new."

Jinx crossed her arms. "What does it tell us then?"

"Eh, that the suit was designed to specifically to fight against the original Titans." Gizmo, squinting, scrolled down the entry displayed on the wide monitor. "It's also meant to be good at breaking, entering, and stealing. That's all his file says." The boy looked to the older villainess. "Can I go to bed now?"

Hard to believe the runt can act so innocent and cute sometimes. "Fine," Jinx relented. She can bottle up the fierce emotions for later anyway. While Gizmo ran off to his room, Jinx made her way to the kitchen area and prepared herself a late dinner. Some canned sausages and bread for a sandwich along with some soda would fill up her system.

Kyd was nibbling on a sliver of beef jerky as he sat on a counter when Jinx began to prepare her meal. He gave a short wave which Jinx returned with a tired smile. Out of all the boys, he was the most mature and the most reliable person she could count on.

She only wished he could verbally talk back to her to make conversations easier. Ignoring the more idiotic comments Billy and the rest made all the time got harder and harder each time they spoke in her presence. Kyd was the only one that could see the big picture like Jinx did. Small-time crime was all fun and good, but it wouldn't get all the infamy and reputation guys like Slade and Madame Rouge earned.

"What's your take on Red X, Kyd?" Jinx asked as she began to eat her sandwich, leaning on the counter beside her friend. Her eyelids were low, probably just as tired as Gizmo, but she had to keep her eyes open to see Kyd's response.

He frowned. Unlike his usual one, the ends of his mouth were drawn further down. He closed his eyes completely, tilting his head forward and shaking it slightly left and right. It was his "deep thinking" expression, his way of saying that he has yet to form a definite opinion.

Kyd looked to Jinx. He gave a questioning gaze, waving his hand toward her face and using his other to touch his chin.

Jinx's sour look returned tenfold. "I'm going to kill him. Next time we meet, Red X is a dead man." She raised her head and met Kyd's stare. "There were six of us, and he beat us, all with barely a sweat. We trained for years, and some punk kid who stole a fancy suit beat us."

Her hand was pulled away as she was about to take another bite. Kyd pointed to her sandwich, now rotten. It was mostly eaten up already, so she tossed it into the trash bin.

"Stay on watch, Kyd," Jinx ordered as she walked away. He nodded. He didn't need much sleep. Jinx ignored the overenthusiastic gamers as she made her way to her room.

Red X's voice sounded a lot like Robin's. That was probably just a filter, though. Nevertheless, he did sound young, though, possibly around the bird's age. What was Robin, sixteen or seventeen? Those two also liked to fight with random gadgets and fancy martial arts. Question is, if Robin trained with the Batman, who trained Red X good enough for him to keep up?

Maybe Slade got himself another apprentice? One that went rogue again? Wait, Slade was supposed to be dead. The League of Shadows could have gotten a new recruit, too, but there were just too many potential trainers and not enough evidence.

Names, some big, some small, went through Jinx's head. Most off the ex–H.I.V.E. students she kept up with were either with the Brotherhood as muscle or laying low till the current "good versus evil" battle ends. Any teen villains Jinx didn't personally know, like Kitty or Kitten or whatever that bitch's name was, were in the same boat.

Bottom line, Red X could be anyone.

Jinx would find out who it was behind the mask soon enough, as long as his face could be distinguished after he's dead.

The young villainess had taken residence in Raven's room. It was dark and purple, just to Jinx's liking. The heroine did have good taste in gothic furniture and artwork, especially that small, striking mirror. Her little diary stashed underneath the bed was also a nice plus. Who knew the apathetic girl had a little crush on that Beast Boy klutz _and _Boy Wonder himself?

On a nightstand beside the bed, Jinx had placed a small portrait of her graduating class from the H.I.V.E. Academy. She sat down and continued her nightly ritual of quietly gazing at the photograph. All of the Five were standing at attendance. Some of the students were with the Brotherhood now: Private H.I.V.E., Angel, XL Terrestrial… Stone was in the picture, too, right between Gizmo, Mammoth, and Jinx.

Forgoing changing her clothes or washing her face, Jinx plopped her back against the bedsheets and went to sleep.

In every city where there was a hero and a rogues gallery for them, there was always a hole in the wall pub for the criminals to rest in between jobs and jail time. Jump City was no different. "Walker's Corner," it was called, in memory of the previous owner who had to leave to take care of his daughter.

The only reason the Titans' let the bar continue running was because the current owner was someone they trusted, a guy named Spike. He used to work for a villain called Atlas. Nowadays he was a part-time mechanic and manager of the Corner. He keeps the pub fairly legit, no full blown fights breaking out or vandalism allowed. As long as things stayed quiet, no cops or Titans interfered, not that many cops knew where to find the place anyway.

Tonight was supposed to be a quiet one, what with almost all of the regulars out of town. Civilians didn't come to Walker's Corner often, but Spike would have left the lights on. On nights like these, he liked to tinker with the radio or T.V. or read one of his car magazines as he patiently waited for a customer.

Red X took advantage of his friend's infamous generosity and patience and strolled in through the back door.

"Hey X!" Spike called out in greeting, not even glancing over his shoulder, instead too engrossed in his magazine. X mad himself comfortable on a barstool and poured himself a glass.

Spike was your larger than average man, built on a mix of both fat and muscle. He usually wore a blue jumpsuit with a matching do-rag. For the longest time X could remember, Spike always had an X-shaped bandage on his left cheek. No one knew why it was there so often, but it became a staple trait of Spike's.

"So how was the H.I.V.E. Five?" Spike asked, turning over a page.

Red X chuckled. "They were better than I expected. Decent enough fighters, but not very bright." X placed a pendant and a snake-shaped scepter on the counter. Spike turned his head to look.

"Oh, where'd you get these?" In the blink of an eye, Spike went from "bored, disinterested" mode into "time is money!" He grabbed each artifact and scrutinized them closely. An ear was still paying attention to the thief before him, however.

"From a few kids that didn't know any better." X removed his mask and took a swig from his drink.

"You aren't much older than them, kid."

"At least I've got more experience than any of them. I can work and act cool while doing it." Red X pointed lazily to the relics in Spike's hands. "We split the profits, sixty-forty, as usual."

"Yeah, yeah," Spike waved off, "I'll find a good dealer." Then he gave X a level, stern look. "These H.I.V.E. kids are going to want to kill you, kid. I don't know if they've actually done it before, but –"

"Kill?" Red X scoffed. "No, they've caused some collateral damage, but those kiddies have never looked someone in the eye and straight-up murdered a person, any of them."

Spike shook his head, taking a sip out of X's drink. "Yeah kid, don't sugar coat it."

Red X stared impassively. "I'm serious."

"And so am I. You make a mistake, you _will_ end up dead, kid, and I'm one of the few people that actually like you." The spoils of the museum were dumped into Spike's special safe behind the counter. "Just watch yourself."

"Always do, Spike." Red X finished his drink, slamming the empty glass down. He was quiet for a moment, with a look on his face that Spike grew to be familiar with.

"What is it, kid?"

"… Do you think I got a shot with that Jinx chick?"

The two stared at each other.

Red X, mask equipped, left the Corner with a smile and a burning red mark on his cheek.

_**Next Morning…**_

"Hope y'all like eggs and pork with a side of pineapple!" Billy exclaimed, his duplicates passing around breakfast.

After a good night's rest, the H.I.V.E. Five's spirits were rejuvenated greatly. Even Jinx appeared to be in a good mood, not bothering with her usual critiques on her teammates. No one really wanted to ruin her temper and tried to give her space.

See-More dared to ask, "So, Jinx, what's the plan for Red X?"

Before their leader could react, Kyd Wykkyd arrived through one of his portals. He was holding a large box and placed it in the middle of the dining table.

"Where'd you get this, Kyd?" Gizmo raised an eyebrow as he chewed on a strip of bacon. "What the heck is it?"

Kyd removed the top and revealed –

"Cake!" Mammoth exclaimed at the towering chocolate deliciousness. He reached with a knife, but Jinx slapped his hand away.

Jinx said, "No one touches it." She practically growled, and everyone backed away. "Was it left on our front porch?" Kyd took one step, stopping to look directly at Jinx. He handed her the note attached to the box.

It read, _Welcome to Jump City! For your duration of stay, please go fuck yourselves! _The signature read none other than _Red X_.

"It's from X," Jinx announced. Mammoth groaned in disappointment with Billy. With a wave of her hand, Jinx destroyed the cake, the entirety of it collapsing onto itself and making a mess. "We're making a game plan to get rid of him, today."

"Wait, Jinx." See-More pointed to what should have been the remains of a ruined cake. "Look."

In the place of the box was what appeared to be a pile of TNT with a timer counting down with around four seconds left.

When Kyd reappeared with Jinx and See-More, they were greeted with the sight of a dozen Billy clones in a dog pile repainted turquoise. Mammoth was still lamenting the inedibility of the paint-covered cake remnants as Gizmo took his breakfast to the living room, muttering more obscenities and curses.

See-More whistled as he crossed his arms. "Red X sure was honest when he said he was going have fun with us." Kyd nodded earnestly.

Jinx was absolutely silent. As something caught her eye, she kneeled down. It was another note. The writing could be clearly distinguished through the paint and frosting.

_It's lead paint, by the way. Ciao for now!_

Jinx swore loud enough for Kyd and See-More to flinch back.


	3. Early Plays

_**Midnight…**_

"I spy with my big ol' eye: a truck full of gold. Ha!"

See-More, elevated up in the night sky of Jump city, readjusted his helmet's settings to guide his bloated eye down toward the armored van. As he descended, he observed Kyd dash out of an alley and into the middle of the street. The van swerved out of control, the driver obviously startled, and probably even more shocked as Kyd disappeared altogether with his teleporting powers.

The vehicle fell over, sliding on its topside before coming to a stop. Its driver, clad in a typical security guard collared shirt and cap, crawled out slowly. When See-More landed and resized his eye back to its default form, Kyd opened the van's back doors. Bags of valuables rolled out. Kyd had a few in his arms already, a small smile gracing his face.

The H.I.V.E. Fives' most recent member let out another crackling holler as he quickly looked over the loot.

"Payday!" he screeched, his best friend nodding in agreement.

Jump City's latest band of super-powered teens had split up into separate teams and were heisting in different areas of the city, per Jinx's orders. Red X had really riled her up, and her endgame today was to see how the solo thief would react to three simultaneous raids in "his" city.

Billy and Mammoth were mugging a series of stores in a popular plaza, Jinx and Gizmo chose to target a local high-end electronics shop, and See-More and Kyd Wykkyd decided to take on an unsuspecting transport van.

See-More opened up one sack, just to take a quick peek before Kyd started shoving their loot through the portal in his cape. Jinx was being more of a hardass than usual with her obsession with X, and a little glimpse at some nice, shiny diamonds would no doubt uplift his spirits.

However, the contents of the bag appeared to be only pieces of plain, worthless rocks. Kyd Wykkyd looked to what his friend was peering at and swiped his cape to cut holes in a series of sacks laying in a row. No jewelry or gold fell out. The brown bags spewed out dozens of stones.

Spotting the driver limping away, Kyd shoved him against the side of the van.

"Hey, friend," See-More waved with a smirk, turning his green eye into a red, hot one. "Where's all the gold?" He sent a laser to pierce the van's armored coating right next to the driver's head. He whimpered as the heat felt close enough to burn his face if the villain moved his aim an inch more.

"I don't know!" the security guard responded, glancing at the rocks piled on the street. "It wasn't my job to pack the merchandise. I just drive the damn thing."

"Yeah?" See-More sneered, singing the older man's hat. "How 'bout you tell us where you to find some rocks that are a little shinier than these useless pebbles?"

Before See-More could make any more demands, his head was bashed against the partially melted hole forming on the van. Kyd tried to elbow the offender. The pinned security guard punched the mute teen, knocking him back. The adrenalized van driver drew his gun as the new arrival rushed him.

Red X turned his back to the guard and jammed him against the truck again. He grabbed the gun and unloaded it before hitting the guard in the throat. X stomped the back of See-More's neck when he tried to get up. When Kyd Wykkyd sliced from the side with his sharp cape, X deflected with a wrist blade. The guard was thrown over Red X's shoulder and rammed Kyd to the mound of sacks and stones.

X fell forward, See-More swinging his arm against the thief's legs. Red X's face hit the asphalt. See-More tried to get to his feet again, but a hand grabbed his ankle, an electrical shock immobilizing the eye specialist. He returned to his previous prone position. X rose to find himself evading and trading punches with Kyd.

"Smart little aleks, aren't you?" Red X said, kneeing his opponent in the chin before rolling away from a potential cut to his leg. "Divide and conquer, classic move, and real original, too."

See-More and the security guard got back up. See-More lined up his eye to fire a laser, only to have the guard tackle him back to the ground.

"Gotta give you kids a pat on the back." Kyd's next jab missed, and he suffered a rough kick to his back. "But don't think that this is _your_ city or anything."

Kyd sidestepped left and right, taking a more defensive approach with X. The red-eyed criminal grabbed an undamaged parcel of rocks and tried to use it like a club. Kyd threw another rock toward X's face, attempting to distract him to allow Kyd a free hit. Red X caught the rock and grabbed Kyd's outstretched leg. The pain in Kyd's knee spiked as X smashed the rock against the limb.

Red X tossed the surprisingly hard piece of stone up into the air and caught it, repeating the action a few times as he backed away from the temporarily disabled Batman lookalike. He and the still struggling security guard and See-More were now all in plain view for X to observe. The guard eventually retrieved his gun, but the task allowed See-More to fire a shot and knock him out. The cyclops then trained his eye at Red X.

"Don't tell me it was you who swiped all the goodies?" See-More questioned, ready to fire if he saw X do something funny.

"Don't tell me you didn't have an x-ray function with your eye to look inside the bags?" X shot back. "You could've seen these rocks and not wasted a good Saturday night getting into street fights."

Red X flung the rock he was tossing forward to be destroyed by See-More's laser. X sent an adhesive X to blind See-More. The laser unfortunately burnt the projectile clean through. See-More would have adjusted his aim back to Red X if the thief hadn't teleported behind him and gotten him into a chokehold.

"Ah, ah, ah," X waved a finger when Kyd sharply got to his feet despite his knee being wobbly. "You know the shtick: sudden moves, your buddy gets hurt."

An X-wrist blade threatened to penetrate the side of See-More's helmet. See-More himself had to stop resisting lest he risk the cuts the blades already made go deeper. Kyd grimaced as his body tensed to the point where he was visibly shaking.

"You be a good boy," X continued, "we all get to go home."

Red X pressed a button on his utility belt. He and See-More disappeared. Kyd stumbled backward, surprised at the move. He swerved his head around, failing to spot the two. He teleported up to the highest building on the street and gazed all across the block intently. This went on longer than he would have liked.

Kyd didn't hear any footsteps, nor the faint sound effect sometimes accompanying Red X's teleportation technology, but the skull-masked adversary's voice whispered from behind, "Here's one of your mistakes: you think you're better than me."

X ducked from another attack. He failed to avoid the second bone-cracking punch that hit his shoulder, though. Nevertheless, Red X continued his fairly calm scolding as Kyd tried to knock his teeth out.

"I can't really tell from you with your, y'know, speech impediment."

Kyd head butt Red X, but X performed a suplex and chucked Kyd off of him.

"But some of your pals; Jinx, Billy, See-More; word on the grapevine is that you guys like to flaunt the fact you went to a villain school."

Two wrist blades and the edge of a cape interlocked for a few seconds.

"I'm all for a good education so that there are less ignorant dumbasses out there, but don't think corrupt indoctrination makes up for experience."

Red X lost the short battle of wills and received cuts on his triceps and chest. He jumped back to get some breathing room.

"Some of the decent hotshot convicts out in the world didn't need a private academy's curriculum to make the papers. Deadshot, Captain Cold, , Firefly, last year's Royal Flush Gang, and the Joker, just to name a few."

Two simultaneous kicks knocked the wind out of both combatants. X still had enough breath to spare to carry on speaking.

"Nice hit," he coughed, "but seriously –"

X spawned behind Kyd and attempted to slice off those bat-like ears on Kyd's headgear. Kyd Wykkyd spawned behind Red X and tried to do the same with X's neck.

"– the H.I.V.E. Five wants to make a name for themselves? You have a long way to go."

During another close quarters scuffle, X managed to push Kyd through a skylight on the roof.

When Kyd reoriented himself, he saw See-More, lying on the wooden floorboards. The side of See-More's head seemed to be broken off, some of his auburn hair showing. A less than comfortable amount of blood was stained on him and the floor.

"You see him?" Red X called from above, casually leaning over the broken window. Kyd shook himself out of his frozen stupor and fell to the floor, the pain of his knee catching up with him. He glared at X. "_That's_ what happens when you piss off the wrong people without the right crap to back you up."

One final shuriken was thrown to the side of the empty apartment. The X glowed brightly, enticing nearby X's placed on the wall to glow as well.

"I warned you," X said lowly as he caressed his hurt shoulder, wincing as he stirred it around. "If you're smart, you'll skip town with Mr. Monster Incorporated there. If not, I'll be seeing you. Tell Miss Fortune I said hey."

With that, Red X teleported away, leaving his victims to handle the ensuing explosion.

_**Next Early Morning…**_

Jinx, her arms crossed, watched through the glass window as Billy and his duplicates bandaged and treated See-More. Kyd, back hunched, observed with a sullen expression afflicting his face.

She underestimated how badly Red X was willing to hurt her teammates. They all thought he was some punk who was on a joy ride, despite the competent fighting skills he displayed during their initial encounter. Now, though, it was clear that this "punk" was more of a threat than they thought.

_Than I thought_, Jinx remind herself. It was her plan, after all, and the only one with enough smarts to get these boys organized. The Five trusted one another to watch each other's back, and Jinx's plan to test the waters got See-More and Kyd seriously hurt.

"You sure your knee is fine now, right Kyd?" she asked her companion.

Kyd nodded slowly. Movement underneath his cape suggested that he might have grabbed the aforementioned injury. The last time anyone saw Kyd this dejected was when he and Angel broke up.

One of the Billy clones gave a thumbs-up from behind the window. Another opened the door to the infirmary and stretched his head out.

"See-More's gonna be a-okay," he reassured with a genuine smile. "Has a concussion, a few cuts, some 'round his cranium, but nothing we can't handle. Should be awake in a few hours."

Kyd gave a mock salute in Billy's direction, still preoccupied with staring at See-More's steadily breathing body. Jinx thanked Billy for his help. She squeezed her hand on Kyd's shoulder before heading off to the living room.

She needed another plan, a better one. She couldn't let that damn thief get away with nearly killing two of her friends. They might have gotten some decent loot, but they had to get rid of X if they wanted to really be the top criminals in Jump City. Then self-proclaimed high-fliers like Red X wouldn't dare to cross the H.I.V.E. Five and professionals like the Brotherhood of Evil would finally see the potential in them.

Red X wasn't an amateur, that much was obvious now. He thought the Five were amateurs. Maybe they were still rusty, as a team, at least. All the same, Red X was just one person. He'd definitely be overwhelmed if a proper plan of attack was made.

After going over her ideas with Gizmo, Jinx planned on spending the rest of the morning with See-More and Kyd in the infirmary.

_**A Few Hours Later…**_

Red X, unmasked, was examining his figure in the mirror.

"You going to stare at yourself all day, kid, or are ya going to get your cut?"

X sighed, brushing his hair out of the way of his vision. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming." He exited the room, walking downstairs to the bar. Spike was counting dollar bills and stacking them at a booth. It would be another hour until Walker's Corner opened.

"Nice catch," Spike commented, smiling at all the money he set before him. "Should be secure for another three months with my share. Oh, and here's yours."

Red X swiped the cash and counted, just in case. "Thank you, Spike, for all these one dollar bills."

Spike gave a hearty laugh. "Fine, here. You only get three-quarters of your share, though. That explosion wasn't part of the plan. Someone has to cover your tracks." The mechanic handed the money, his smile thinning out into a straight line. "What was with that, anyhow? What did the H.I.V.E. Five do to piss you off?"

"They didn't really do anything," X admitted, counting the bills. "I'm just making sure they know the deal. As much as I joke around, I know it isn't all fun and games."

"Still, X. The news caught some footage of that Kyd Wykkyd kid dragging the eye kid out of the neighborhood. They left a trail of blood; pretty brutal, considering your M.O."

"Was trying to make a point." Red X shoved his share into his wallet. "Moving on, how do I look?" X moved back to allow Spike a better view of his casual attired form. "I got a date today."

"You're dating again?" Spike raised an eyebrow.

"Fang – y'know, Kitten's boyfriend – he knew a guy that set me up with someone. Apparently, Kitten wants to have a 'double date' thing, so…"

"Ah, I see." Spike cupped his chin and eyed his younger associate. "Hell, I don't know the first thing about style or fashion. You look like another teenager, what else can I say?"

The dashing rogue shrugged. "Good enough for me. I'll see you Thursday. Later, Spike."

"Don't come crying to me if you fall in love and get your heart broken!" Spike called to the civilian mask of Red X exiting the building.

"Screw you, old man!" X called back, the sound of a motorcycle running off into the distance resounding.

Spike snickered at their inside joke. Honestly, however, he did wonder why Red X was being more vicious to the Five than he ever was with the Titans.


	4. Third Date

The Pizza Corner was the infamous unoriginally named restaurant located somewhere in the inner-city region of Jump City. Its infamy was attributed to the occasional damage it suffered whenever a villain attacked the Teen Titans as they ate their lunch. Nevertheless, the restaurant remained a popular hotspot among many of Jump's inhabitants.

Unfortunately, with the constant investments that had to be put in to repair the damages along with the owners' bad plays in their gambling careers, the Pizza Corner was being shut down. While many were unsurprisingly disappointed, all of their products had their prices halved, and several were taking advantage of the going-out-of-business sale while they still could.

One of these individuals was Red X, in his civilian identity. Since the H.I.V.E. Fives' recent activity over the past week dwindled down to a gas station robbery here and there, X thought it was a good time as any to spend the money he managed to earn from his run-ins with those crazy kids.

His date also happened to want to spend their third outing at the Pizza Corner.

X had seen her before. She worked as a clerk at some of the places he's mugged. She was also one of the unlucky dames that had to be rescued by the Titans during a villainous plot every now and then. It was during one such villainous plot where she and Kitten became somewhat reluctant friends, or so that's how Fang explained it. This supposed friendship made X more relaxed around her as he didn't need to hide _everything _from a potential ally.

"So you working at the Video Dome again?" X asked his companion, mouth full. The pair was eating in the outdoor area of the restaurant, up on the second floor of the building. An umbrella provided cover from the noon sun.

"Yeah," the ponytailed brunette said lowly. "Thing is that the H.I.V.E. Six robbed it the other day. I'm out of work till they restock, and there aren't even any open positions anywhere else."

"It's the H.I.V.E. Five," Red X corrected.

"What? But I'm pretty sure there are six of them."

"Nobody ever said they were smart." X offered his date one of his side dishes. "Want some curly fries?"

Small dimples appeared on her freckled face. "Thanks. It really sucks that this place is closing down."

"Tell me about it." Looking up to a table a few meters away, X snapped his fingers and pointed toward it. "That party table, by the karaoke machine? Some pals and I spent Kitten's sixteenth birthday there. Who knew she could sing so well?"

The teenager across from Red X laughed. "I can still remember when this place was just the size of a cheap apartment, way before the Titans ever came to Jump." She looked down to the boulevard below and motioned to a particular section of the long line of buildings. "My sisters and liked to go to the arcade on the weekends and go to the Pizza Corner for lunch. It was practically my childhood, hanging out here."

_Ah, ain't that sweet_, X thought, smiling at his date. "You met Goth Boy here, right? What was his name? Lucy?"

"He likes to be called Lucifer when in his Goth getup." She gave X a sidelong look. "I wish we thought of 'Lucy' a long time ago."

"Your welcome."

The two ate in relative silence for a moment.

"What about you?" Henrietta suddenly asked, leaning forward and resting her arms on their table. "Any childhood memories you'd like to share?"

X took a short pause, his smile thinning, before he answered. "Not too much to share. I drifted a lot when I was younger, moving from city to city. I just came to Jump recently, like, around two years ago."

"And how do you like Jump City so far?" Henrietta continued, not bothering to ask about X's parents or current place of residence as Fang warned her not to get into those topics.

"Not bad, not bad at all. Doing better than cities like Gotham, considering, y'know, the quality of supervillains."

"You get used to those kind of people given enough time," Henrietta waved dismissively. "Have you seen the Titans up close yet? They usually hang around town, but we haven't seen much of them recently."

Silently, Red X snickered. "Seen them a few times. Looks like they take good care of this city."

"Well, there was that one time Slade took over the city," she recalled. "Other than that, the Titans do okay, I guess. If only they stuck around to kick those H.I.V.E. kids out of the city."

"I wouldn't worry too much about them," X replied with a smirk. "If they can't do basic math, I think the city will be fine. Besides, the way I hear it, the Titans are taking care of the next maniacal world domination, bigger fish to fry than a bunch of high school dropouts."

Just as Henrietta reached for her drink while X was chewing on his bread roll, someone climbed up onto their floor and kicked the table over. The couple withdrew from their seats and backed away.

"Did you hear that, Billy? This fella thinks we can't do math just because we came up with a good team name!"

Dozens of similar-looking trespassers in red jumpsuits climbed onto the Pizza Corner's elevated outdoor area.

"Now that don't mean nothing, Billy. He's just jealous he don't have any super powers is all."

The army knocked over more tables and chairs, some even eating the pizza slices the customers forsake to run away.

Henrietta gripped X's shoulder and pulled him toward the exit. "Come on, hurry!"

_Oh, pray that Red X will be in a good mood when he comes across you, Billy_, X thought as shoved a clone out of his and Henrietta's way and went for the stairs. _You just ruined a perfectly good date_.

When they reached the first story, one Billy managed to tackle X to the floor. Two more copies grabbed Henrietta, inciting a shriek that added to the collective screams all the customers were giving as they tried to flee. The cries were only challenged by the laughter and banter of the Billys.

"Get off of me!" Both X and Henrietta sucker punched their respective captors. However, more clones converged toward them.

Henrietta picked up a fallen chair and used it to hold back the Numerous aggressors. "Why are you even here? This place is going to close soon. It's not like they have much for you to rob."

"Ah, darling, it ain't all about the cash."

"Yeah. Billy and I got to have a little fun between jobs."

Unfortunately for the anarchists, they were not expecting much resistance as they raided the restaurant. It wasn't like civilians go out of their way to fight criminals in this day and age. Henrietta, however, simply bashed each Billy clone again and again with the chair. When one clone tried to sneak up from behind, he fell as Red X knocked him out with a fire extinguisher.

_If I wasn't on a date,_ X considered as he and Henrietta tried to fight their way toward the exit, _I could've made a pretty good example out of this redneck_.

As the pair of impromptu vigilantes fought on, the original Billy observed from the cashier desk. Most of the customers and restaurant employees were cowering, leaving those two the only ones even making an effort to escape.

Jinx's plan was just for Billy to attack a popular joint where the local teenagers hung out at. She suspected a casual guy like Red X would have marked the Pizza Corner part of his "territory." The rest of the Five, minus Kyd Wykkyd and See-More, were waiting and watching out for X's arrival.

"Hey," Billy shouted at the top of his lungs, still chewing on some French fries, "you, freckles and the fire fighter!"

After one more bash, X and Henrietta found the Billys keeping their distance but surrounding the couple in a circle. The screams of the other customers were muffled as the replicas stuffed rags or napkins into their mouths.

_Jinx said to make a show if he didn't show up._

Billy jumped off from where he sat and strolled into the circle. "What's your names? You skedaddling young'uns are the first pair of civvies that have ever tried to resist a good ol' robbery and are putting up a good fight, too!"

"Screw you!" the brunette barked, chucking her chair toward the lead Billy. Not expecting the move, he was caught off-guard and tumbled back against his brothers. Red X shot the contents of the fire extinguisher against the rest, helping clear the way to the double door exit.

Alas for the off-duty thief, he tripped and fell when a Billy stuck out his ankle. Another Billy blocked the doorway with a fallen vending machine when Henrietta dashed through.

"Now, don't you run off, partner," Billy drawled out, he and a clone picking up X and restraining him. "You'd make a good hostage, I reckon, the hero of this fine establishment being hung over the roof." With a nod, they dragged X back to the second floor while the rest of the copies bullied the rest of restaurant's inhabitants.

_Where are the Titans when you need them?_ X thought as he silently berated himself for letting the clones get the better of him. He didn't want to risk the H.I.V.E. Five finding any clue of his secret identity, so he chose not to take out of the Xenothium-powered equipment he had on-hand.

The Billys dragged Red X pass his overturned table and dangled him over the roof's edge by the scruff of his collar. X could see the semicircle of police cars and some SWAT vans setting up shop.

There was Henrietta, talking to someone with a badge, but she didn't look like a cop. She had a red coat with long, raven hair hanging off the back of her head. She was probably some investigator, and the stranger was the first to announce loudly of X's predicament to those around her. Henrietta looked up as her eyes widened, taking a step back.

"Y'all listen right here," the original Billy proclaimed next to the clone holding X, "It don't matter that the Titans are gone, or that most of the villains ain't around. The H.I.V.E. Five are alive and here to stay, ya hear me folks?"

Jinx's voice echoed from Billy's ear piece. "Gizmo's detecting Xenothium somewhere in the Pizza Corner, but there's no sign of X. Watch out, he could be invisible, but nice show. Just don't –"

The radio channel was abruptly overwhelmed by Billy's screams. Gizmo's cloaked drone in the sky cited the cause for Billy's pains to be a bald man in a tie and suspenders shooting a Taser. The Billy clutching Red X turned only to get the teeth knocked out of him. X would have plummeted to the ground if his reaching arm wasn't snatched by the copper.

"You alright, kid?" he asked as he pulled X up. He could hear the front door being busted open and the raddling of feet below.

"Could be better," Red X remarked, stroking his bruised wrist from his struggle with the clones.

As another Billy tried to get the jump on them, X used his good fist to punch him in the gut. The clone fell unconscious with a knee to his nostrils.

"Much better now," X continued.

Within the hour, the Billys were forced to retreat. With the original down for the count, they had lost their resolve and were beaten harshly by batons and riot shields. Mammoth and Gizmo swooped in to clear the way for their escape. Despite the restaurant practically in ruins, there were few injuries for the civilians and the police officers.

When Red X stepped out of the front doors, Henrietta startled him with a hug.

"Easy, easy," he murmured. "Hurt my wrist when I was in there."

X's savior joined the couple and placed a hand on the boys shoulder. "Come on, let the EMT check him out."

"And who are you?" Henrietta narrowed her eyes, her general distrust of the JCPD she spoke of on their first date surfacing.

"Detective Ethan Bennet," the cop said, hardly acknowledging the hostile tone. "You should take better care of your boyfriend."

"Maybe _you_ should take better care of this city's supervillain problem, _officer_."

Before X could even try to defuse the situation (whether X liked it or not, the cop saved his ass, and that deserved a little rapport), the woman from earlier got between them.

"Miss Griselda, you cut your arm," she pointed to gnashing cut. Henrietta cursed quietly; she didn't like medical personnel no matter how useful they were and was trying to hide her injury. It wasn't that deep, anyway. "I told you to get that checked out."

Red X put his arm around Henrietta. "Let' go." He turned his head as they walked to say, "Thanks, Officer Bennet."

While X was saying random sweet nothings into Henrietta's ear, he listened to the adults they left behind, managing to hear, "You were being reckless, Ethan."

"That kid could have died, Yin."

"This isn't Gotham. This city isn't full of homicidal psychopaths."

"And this isn't Metropolis, where the local hero can be here in a heartbeat."

Red X couldn't hear the rest of the conversation as he and Henrietta sat inside an ambulance, but he heard enough from the officers that he had never seen previously in the years he spent in Jump City.

_Bennet, Yin, likely transfers from Gotham and Metropolis._

_ More new blood in town. This is going to be _great_._

X

While Billy, no duplicates running about, was taking a bubble bath, the rest of the Five were having a team meeting in the living room. See-More had recovered enough to join them. He lacked his head gear as Billy didn't want any unnecessary pressure added on See-More's bandages. The cyclops' presence helped raise Kyd' spirits, though, not that most of the teen rogues could tell.

"So, boys," Jinx drawled out, eyeing the map of the city strewn on the coffee table, "what went wrong?"

"That crud-munching thief didn't come," Gizmo spat, "at all, and the cops beat up Billy."

"Exactly."

"Why do we gotta wait for him to come out?" Mammoth asked as he ate his bag of chips. "We have him outnumbered. If we play our cards right, we can just knock down his front door and kick his ass!"

"City's too big," See-More pointed out. His voice held traces of weakness, but it was otherwise firm. "He can be just about anywhere. Setting up more of Gizmo's drones and bugs would take up a lot more cash and materials than we have."

"And it would take up too much time to set up surveillance like that," Jinx stated further. The payoff would be great, but her boys wouldn't have the patience for that. Besides, X knew this city better than them. He'd probably find Gizmo's, well, gizmos pretty quickly.

Kyd crossed his arms. He met Jinx's eye, nonverbally telling her that he wanted X's blood just as much as she did.

"The news and the Titans don't have any reports on any of X's hideouts," See-More recalled from his days of bedrest and research, "but he has got to have at least one to store his Xenothium and all his loot."

"Place a tracker on him during our next fight," Jinx suggested. "The fight has to be on our own terms, though. We can't let him get the best of us again like in the museum."

Gizmo scratched the back of his head. "I can get us a tracer, but Red X is pretty unpredictable. How are we supposed to draw him out?"

"How 'bout we just make some noise?" Mammoth smashed a fist into his palm. "Tear up the town, and when he shows, we take him, or put the tracker on him."

"That was pretty much the plan with Billy," See-More reminded the hairy behemoth. "Look how _that_ turned out. We never got to get a better feel of his fighting style."

"No, that's the best plan we still have," Jinx said. "Gizmo, I want you to make a few tracers and some more of your drones, but up the cloaking and defenses for them. Kyd, you and I are going to do some sparing with Billy when he gets better. Mammoth's on robbery patrol."

"What about me, Jinx?" See-More piped up. "I'm ready help with anything."

Despite the tugging in her stomach Jinx felt, she said, "See-More, I want you to do research on the cop that surprised Billy. Guys like that are more trouble than their worth, and if we need to make an example, he could be a perfect one."

See-More nodded at his crush. "You got it."

"We can start working on our assignments tomorrow," Jinx concluded, stunning most of her teammates. It was more like her to get started on taking down a person she was ticked with ASAP. "For now, let's just take the rest of the day off."

Almost immediately, the T.V. was turned on and the boys were playing with their video games. Jinx would've have joined if the players weren't so loud, so she decided to heat up a leftover steak the Five had recently acquired and leave it for Billy when he was done with his bath.

X

Red X, hanging out in Spike's apartment, had a few newspaper clippings set up across the walls and three computer screens lit up with photos and news articles. A good thief does his research, after all. With the Five, he didn't need to do much of it, but JCPD Detectives Bennet and Yin were much more interesting.

Ethan Bennet grew up in Gotham City. He wasn't rich, had a pretty average upbringing, but he became close friends with billionaire playboy philanthropist Bruce Wayne ever since childhood. X had a small laugh at that, and it looked like Bennet was one of Batman's most prevalent supporters in the Gotham City Police Department next to Commissioner James Gordon. However, during some sort of political ploy by a Quincy Sharp, Bennet had to leave Gotham or be framed for helping partake in some villainous plot. Wayne was able to maintain Bennet's career as a detective intact by transferring him to Jump City.

If Spike had any veracity in his crazy conspiracy theories, maybe Wayne chose Jump City so that someone he could trust was able to keep an eye on the Batman's sidekick.

Ellen Yin, an everyman woman, worked up from the bottom of the food chain and became the head of her policing department back in Metropolis. While she openly worked with Superman and some of the other heroes on occasion, she held a distrust for independent vigilantes. She critiqued the Batman for having his own agenda when Superman was willing to coordinate with the police and follow orders. Lex Luthor apparently was also carrying out another ploy like Sharp, and Yin had to also leave her hometown. Commissioner Gordon connected with a few people and got her a job in Jump with Bennet. Gordon and Yin were good colleagues, notwithstanding Gordon's willingness to work with the Bat.

Definitely more interesting than a few wannabe villains harassing a perfectly good restaurant's going-out-of-business sale.

Now, Yin and Bennet; from the look of things, they were anything but amateur. They had years of experience dealing with supervillains and criminals. X was hoping for a relaxing spring of tormenting the Five. With these detectives on board, he'd need to treat them like he treats Kid Flash: cracking annoying jokes while moving quick and fast to get out without getting too hurt.

Damn, there were only three days left for spring break. Henrietta would have to go back to school soon, and X actually found herself liking her. With the H.I.V.E. and the detectives on his plate, along with good old thieving, he'd be strapped for time to take her out on anymore dates.

Oh well. He would make the time. It was a long time since he really liked any female friend like he did with Henrietta. Red X should be able to take a breather.


	5. Closer and Closer

Another week passed, then another, and it was two weeks till Henrietta had to up the ante for her preparation for finals. Being the ever faithful boyfriend Red X was, he offered his moral support and gave her the space she needed to work with her study partner. Her partner was some blue-eyed blondie, not a guy, so X felt pretty sure no respectable teenage boy was going to try to steal his girl. In any case, the reprieve from his loving relationship allowed X to spend some quality time with Spike.

"So you're free tonight?" Spike had asked as he and X, in civvies, played a short game of cards. X shrugged in response.

"Yeah. Any jobs available? Been too busy to check out the market."

"Not really. The Brotherhood's upping their activities, so most of our usual costumers are taking a raincheck until things calm down. Can't risk accidentally pissing off big-name villains with a war coming soon."

"I assume you're speaking from experience," X prodded, "considering your employment history."

Instead of some form of physical retribution that X had expected, Spike said, "Keep taking jabs at your personal mechanic, who knows, maybe some hobos will find a bike to scrap at the junkyard."

X tensed. "Spike, _please_, we've been working on my own ride for three months. Get rid of it, three months of wasted effort."

"I couldn't care less about it. It's _your _pet project, remember? Besides, don't you already have a motorcycle?"

"Spike, that's for my off-hours. Red X needs his own set of wheels." X placed his cards down. "Speaking of bikes, did you find the last part for it?"

"Actually, yeah." Spike reached into his pocket and took out his phone. After fiddling with it, he showed X the screen. There was a picture of a blue microchip. "This is the last component we need, a little something to help with the autopilot."

"Autopilot? This isn't the Batmobile we're making. It's just a motorbike."

"It'll be useful. You'll thank me for it later." Spike threw the phone at X's hands. "Microchip's at a research laboratory, downtown. Lightly armored guards, mediocre security, so it should be a decent thrill for you."

"Sounds like it," Red X agreed, grabbing his utility belt he had left strewn on the table. "I'll be back before midnight. Ciao." Spike snorted at his dramatic exit, deciding to flip around his cards briefly as he waited for the kid to return.

A bell jingled, prompting Spike to look up at the bar's front door. What he saw ruined his fairly good mood.

"Joe Maggio," the woman greeted as she and her companion showed their badges. "I'm Detective Ellen Yin, and this is Detective Ethan Bennet. We have a few questions for you."

X

_**H.I.V.E. Tower…**_

"I got a bead on him!" Gizmo shouted in excitement. While the Billy clones fell over a pyramid of cards, Mammoth spat out his soda over the lower half of the television screen. "Someone go get Jinx!"

See-More gave her a call on his communicator as Gizmo plastered his fingers on the computer's keyboards.

Eventually, Jinx and Kyd Wykkyd entered the living room. They were out of their usual uniforms, instead in their sparing gear, wet with sweat. See-More quickly averted his gaze and focused solely on the screen Gizmo set to display camera feed from one of his drones. It was tracking Red X as a he ran freely across city rooftops.

"Where's he going?" Mammoth asked as he ate from his bag of chips, the H.I.V.E. Five gathering around Gizmo.

Red X soon landed on the rooftop of one nondescript building, entering through a skylight.

"Darn crook's probably doing a heist," a Billy speculated. "What's the plan, boss lady?"

She only took one gulp of fresh bottled water before a sadistic smile enriched her face.

X

_** Night…**_

"Sorry pal," Red X apologized to an unconscious guard he had glued against the wall, "them's the breaks."

X strolled down the short corridor, coming to a door that was easily overcome by a quick teleportation. Inside, there were rows upon rows of cabinets, something you'd find in a bank vault.

The thief checked Spike's phone, matching the set of numbers displayed with the row of digits screwed against one drawer. Inside was a pile of microchips.

_So many chips, so much cash to be earned,_ X mused. He only needed one for his new bike, but what the hell? Spike should probably know who to sell some experimental tech to. X stuffed as many as he could in the empty compartments in his belt. _Thank you, GothCorp. _

Red X made his way the top floor, humming silently as he was getting ready to hop out of the skylight.

Reaching the rooftop, X was suddenly picked up and thrown toward the horizon. He obligatorily yelped, barely catching himself from a bad fall on another rooftop.

"Thought you kids learned your lesson," X crowed out as he got into a hunched stance, seeing the telltale pink energy and red costumes.

He expected some droll comebacks, but the rascals immediately went ahead to try to kill him. The Billys came at him, almost shoving each other in their attempt to beat X senseless. Jinx made a few cracks on the ground, nothing X couldn't handle if he paid attention. Making sure he didn't trip became harder and harder, though, as she made the roof shake abruptly or when she joined in pummeling X. Kyd Wykkyd spawning and despawning to put in a cheap punch wasn't helping matters either.

_Getting smarter, or at least a little more professional. Straight to the punches._

X could hear Mammoth leaping over to the fracas. While brawling with multiple opponents wasn't something X was unexperienced with, a big guy like Mammoth would make things even more difficult. So, he teleported a good deal away from the blast radius. When he rematerialized, Red X was pleased to see almost half of the Billy clones groaning and rolling on the ground, the brute scratching his head with a sheepish look.

After dodging another attack, X began to teleport sporadically, appearing and disappearing in intervals that let him disable more of the remaining clones, systematically. All it took was knocking a Billy's teeth out by smashing his head against the ground or against a fellow duplicate.

Jinx and Wykkyd, damn, they sure were trying their hardest to get their hits in. X kept seeing a flash of pink as he bashed a Billy, or a black colored swirl one step behind him. Mammoth was basically just waving his arms around, but he failed to accidentally hit his teammates to X's minor disappointment.

The H.U.D. displayed through Red X's mask alerted him that his battery charge was draining faster than expected. There were only a couple of Billys left, so X gave a final teleport. He landed over Mammoth, his feet planting themselves on the giant's shoulders. There was just enough power to plaster an X onto the animalistic crook's back that pulsated enough energy to char his hair and thrust him to the streets below. The rest of the clones got caught in the animal's tumble and his fall down.

The professional heister didn't get a chance to crack a joke as the vicious assault continued. The kiddies definitely were going for the gold today.

"What's got you boys and girls so aggro tonight?"

They didn't answer. All Jinx and Kyd did was punch and kick and dodge, and Red X could really only respond to the attacks. His battery was at around thirty-five percent, not quite enough for combat and an elegant escape. It became a stalemate as neither X or the H.I.V.E. kids were able to gain the upper hand. The latter's frustration was more evident on their perspiring, drenched faces. At least X knew when to breathe during a fight.

Finally, after who knows or cares how long, the vigorous duo backed off, panting a few meters away from a Red X whose battery power recharged to forty-percent, at least for short-term use. The three were the only ones left standing.

"Where's your newfangled Polyphemus?" X asked, cracking his neck. Some banter would help stall for some recharge time. "Ain't nobody's going to hurt him if he comes out to play. And the Bizzaro Dexter? He stuck in his laboratory?"

Kyd gave a look. It said, _Shut up, please_.

Miss Fortune glared, the same kind of glare that people gave X whenever he tried to play the fool in an otherwise serious situation.

"You should have killed See-More when you had the chance," Jinx said coolly. "He'll be the one that's going to personally carve you up."

"After _you've_ had your way with me, I'm sure," X gauged. He used a wrist blade to tap the sides of his mask. "You want a little payback, don't you Miss Fortune? Slice up my pretty face like I nicked yours?"

She gurgled a chuckle, her frown turning a one-eighty. "Yeah, you're going to be _very_ pretty when I draw two pink Xs right inside your eyeballs. Bet you'll look real charming then."

"What? Is my natural charisma not obvious with how I am right now?"

Jinx sighed despairingly while Kyd continued to take in deep, silent breathes, just as Red X was doing.

X went along with his normal shtick of wisecracks and smartass-ery. His non-mute opponent went along with it. It was practically a routine at this point with him and the Five. Someone tries to rob something, then Red X kicks that someone's ass.

It was getting a little dull.

Right at fifty percent, X teleported to evade the torrent of energy that was suddenly fired at him. He stepped behind Jinx, planted an X on her backside, and watched her fire off the roof the same way as Mammoth did. Kyd tried to surprise X, but he could see the mute boy coming a mile away. Once he was close enough, X quickly flung him over after his fellow criminals.

Jinx suddenly blindsided him, reappearing with a flash purple lightning. X clutched the side of his injured face, rolling across the roof. Lying with his stomach facing the night sky, Jinx tackled him. She pulled out a knife. Red X struggled with his arms to block the blade, inches away from his throat.

"How are you so good?!" Jinx screamed.

_Jesus_, _Miss Fortune's crazier than I thought_. She had bloodshot-like eyes, strained pink veins where the red was supposed to be.

"You keep beating us, again and again! Where the hell did you learn how to do all this?"

The subtle strength enhancers in the Red X suit were starting to wane. Jinx had both her hands pushing the handle of her knife down, her nemesis only just keeping it at bay.

"I didn't go through seven years in the H.I.V.E. Academy just to be humiliated by a jackass in a suit that isn't even his!"

X used one hand to hold Jinx's neck. He made her look closer into the expressionless eyes of his skull mask. With the precarious circumstances given, Red X couldn't exactly do a head butt, but he could try to psyche Jinx up a little more.

"We've got something in common, y'know," X wriggled underneath her. "You and I, we're both not-up-to-snuff bastards out to prove ourselves to the world. At least, I learned a long time ago that the world doesn't give a single fuck about what you have to prove."

Red X wrapped both his hands over Jinx's, vying for more control over the blade.

"I know that you want to be something big; a Charles Manson psychotic that people will be begging for mercy, probably, or maybe the next Joan of Arc type ready to rule the world."

Jinx oh so wanted to draw some blood. "How the heck would you know anything about me?"

"I know a lot more 'bout you than you'll ever know about me."

The knife's pointed edge began to reach closer to X's Adam's apple. Their faces were even closer now, perfect for Red X's whispers to be heard.

"But here's a little fun fact about me, Miss Fortune," X said. "I tried to go big, I really tried, but the world just spat me back out like I was nothing. That's why I work small, do some big jobs, and then stay small. You get too big, well –"

X redirected the blade to stab into his shoulder. Jinx churned it around, feeling the cracks in the bone it was making.

"– you die a rotten, dirty death. You let the world eat you up, or you get off your ass and back on your feet."

Finally, X bashed his head against hers, knocking her out and turning off all of the light energy she was emitting.

He kept the knife as he limped his way home. It wouldn't help if the Five or the cops got any blood samples of him. Besides, he gave enough advice to Jinx as it was.

She better be ready next time. Otherwise, it'll only get bloodier.

X

Once he was out of his suit, X injected himself with a little blue serum Spike kept under his bed. It was in their secret stash of meds if their usual off-the-record doctors weren't available, or if X was just too lazy to go out of his way to find one. The latter was X's current reasoning. The arm would be sore for a week, but X could live with that.

After stashing all his loot, X made his way downstairs to the bar. Something was off, though. Spike should have been in relaxing at a booth, watching the late night news. However, the man was pacing back and forth when X arrived.

Spike instantly faced his protégé. Beads of sweat stained his temple. He was nervous about something, very nervous.

"Kid, we've got problems," he said, then paused. "Your eye –"

"I'll get to it later," X insisted, cringing brusquely. "What kind of problems?"

Snatching a spare rag in Spike's pocket, he tossed it to X. "It's those cops you talked about," he continued his pace, "the ones from out of town. They came here, not long after you left."

_What? Shit_. "What did they want?"

"Just information." Spike took out another rag hanging from a side pocket and wiped away some sweat. "They wanted some first-hand info on Jump's crime. I didn't want any trouble, so I went along with them. It went smooth, real smooth, but guess what?"

He slammed a series of pieces of paper down onto a table.

"They've got dirt on me." Spike slide the paper to X.

It was a file on Spike, with a head shot, full name, and other information. It was obviously a photocopy, everything black and white and some of the ink faded. There was a bulleted list, cataloging off all the dirty little things Spike had done throughout his criminal career.

Spike has a miniature globe standing over the bottles behind the bar. It was an old fashioned one with brownish, yellowish colors. Some of the paint was chipped off, and the rotating mechanism jammed itself whenever X tried to play with it.

There was a signature across the Pacific Ocean, in red. Spike claimed it was blood. When X didn't believe him, Spike took out an antiquated photo album. The old mechanic was actually a skinny guy back in the day.

He told X about how he was a thief himself, though not equipped with Xenothium. The whole business back then took more wit and charm then Red X really needed. During the course of Spike's thieving routine, Spike had to talk fast, improvise lines, and move as fast as lighting to get the goods his clients wanted. From the smiles Spike gave, it must have been a satisfying job, complimented with its alluring perks, of course.

His boss awarded him the small globe, as a token of friendship. He made a cut in his hand and used his own blood to sign his name. It was meant to symbolize the blood, sweat, and tears put into all their hard work.

The next day, Spike found out his boss was gunned down by French mobsters. Spike had to go into hiding as his twentieth century thieves' guild was being hunted down.

And all that history was dumbed down to a simple "supplying arms to terrorists" and "conspiracy against the state" on the list.

X set the paper down and watched Spike take a seat with a contemplative expression. "Did they threaten you?"

"Not outright. They spoke with the police chief, so they know how I operate, who I am now. They just wanted extra leverage if they need an informant, but what they have on me," Spike shook his head vehemently, "at the best, I can be in jail for decades."

Sitting across Spike, X frowned as his head went in circles searching for an answer. "What were they like, those detectives?"

"That Bennet guy played good cop," Spike shrugged. "Yin played bad cop, but they were nothing but civil. They know how to keep their cool, know respect."

"So that makes them more dangerous," X concluded.

"And unpredictable, if shit goes down between us."

Spike wearily puffed out a breath of air. X was expecting a "I'm getting too old for this shit," but he instead tossed X a set of keys.

"Those are for your bike," Spike said. "Get your stuff and head out. It won't help any of us if those cops manage to get a warrant to search the Corner and the apartment. We'll need our distance."

Reluctantly, X nodded. "Alright." He got up to leave. Spike rose as well, closing the distance with X and placing a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Watch yourself, kid. Those other 'kids' you've been playing around are one thing. These cops are another."

"I know. I get it." X patted Spike's arm before turning away. "I'll be seeing you."

And that was the last of piece of notable dialogue the bug Ethan Bennet planted was able to broadcast.

He and his new partner, Yin, were sitting in Yin's car, a block away from Walker's Corner. Yin was at the wheel, Ethan opposite her as he adjusted the settings on his radio.

"So he has a partner," Yin remarked, eyes transfixed on the dark street through the windshield, "or a close associate that could live with him."

Ethan nodded, tightening the knot of his tie. "He sounds young, though. He could be just a poor kid who needed a place to sleep."

Yin rolled her eyes. "Yes, and I'm sure you'll look into it."

Ethan sighed, setting the radio down on the dashboard.

"Are you sure he won't find the bug?" Yin asked

"Yes. It'll be fine, don't worry."

A buzz resounded off of Yin's own personal radio. "Detectives," a voice said, "we've got an incident. No suspects or witnesses on the scene. Get to Chairman Road as soon as you can."

Yin picked up her radio and responded, "Standard or supervillain?"

"Supervillain."

"Ten-four." The engine revved up.

"Must be the H.I.V.E. Five," Ethan said, buckling his seat belt. "Think Rojas is leaning more to go with our plan to deal with them?"

"The Titans are going to be gone for who knows how long," Yin replied as they drove off. "The Chief is an idiot if he keeps ignoring the H.I.V.E. and letting a thief do his work for him."

X

_**Next Morning…**_

Red X woke up to the sound of his phone ringing.

Turning off his alarm, he found a text from Spike.

"Stay away from the Corner, and the cops," the message read. "They're smart. Might connect a run-in with Red X to a recent exchange with good ol' Spike. Stay alive."

X grimaced.

Another text popped up, from Kitten's boyfriend, Fang.

"Old war buddy of Kitten's dad, calls himself Ding Dong Daddy."

A low-quality picture of an overweight man in an unusual looking car accompanied the name.

"Guy says he's got a briefcase that belongs to Boy Wonder Robin. Hosting a race in Nevada in two days. Winner gets it. Legit deal. Interested?"

Red X smiled.

**x**

**(A/N) Fellow writer _Mandalore the freedom_ informed me that another writer, _Freedom Guard_, passed away in on August 5, 2015. I am told his real name is Salvador R. Balleza, though I've never spoken with him. I do recall enjoying some of his lengthy Mass Effect, Justice League, and Fallout pieces. If you are familiar with him or not, perhaps look into them to see what writing potential he had and of what he left behind. It is a shame such a talented guy, in my opinion, had to go, but I ask of you to give him a moment of silence and acknowledgment.**


	6. Contemplating Reflections

_**Somewhere in Nevada…**_

He was teasing him.

Ding Dong Daddy had the briefcase right there, and he was _teasing _him with it, holding it over the back side of his car, laughing like a maniac.

It could have been very easy to use his grapple to snatch the case, be over and done with this entire race. However, that risked damaging the case. It was built out of sturdy, durable metallic material, but the contents inside were still vulnerable. That was something to change when he got the case back.

His hand was so close in reaching it. Ignoring the heat of the desert and the rolling dust rustling into his breath, he stretched out his hand as far as he could…

"Just a little bit closer," he muttered under his breath, but then Cyborg's voice rang on the radio in his helmet.

"Yo, Robin! You've got company!"

Someone rammed the R-Cycle to the side. Another bike, sleek and black in design, sped up in front of Robin's, Ding Dong Daddy getting away. Robin took a little swerving to regain control of his own motorcycle.

"Not so fast, Robin." His assailant turned his skull masked face to him. "_I'll_ be winning that prize today."

Robin grunted, giving the thief a displeasing look. "Red X," he growled.

From the reports Robin's been reading, Red X was taking advantage of the fact that the Titans were dealing with the Brotherhood of Evil. He was wrecking Jump City, stealing everyone blind and getting away scot-free. The streets weren't safe, the crime rates amplified by those scuffles he's been having with the H.I.V.E. Five. If Robin had his way, Wally would have been cleaning Jump up weeks ago. Unfortunately, he was still preoccupied "assisting" a certain New Zealand heroine.

Thankfully, Uncle Ethan was in Jump. Robin knew he'd do his best to keep the people safe.

But Red X was still a major problem that needed to be dealt with, preferably sooner rather than later.

The road led the three racers to ride up into a mountain range. The road was paved, but the ground was getting farther and farther away from them. The risk of losing the briefcase became more likely, so Robin chose to bide his time by dealing with X.

"So what's in the case?" the criminal called out, the two driving almost side by side.

"You'll never find out," Robin barked back.

Red X chuckled, the voice filter gargling out the noise. "We'll see about that!"

He smashed the side of his bike against the R-Cycle. Sparks flew out as the bikes collided alongside the traffic barrier. Robin gritted his teeth, trying to gain enough momentum to smash back. He could practically feel X grinning through his mask.

Facing the skull mask just exemplified how much of a mistake Red X was. He was never supposed to become such a recurring entity in Robin's life. The suit was a one-off thing or a secret weapon if his friends were ever compromised. Robin didn't need another alter ego. He needed just an incentive to fall back on if times were desperate enough. But someone just _had_ to decide that Red X deserved his own run, his own identity to flesh out.

There was even the skull and X letter painted on the front of the black motorcycle. Where did he even get the bike?

Eventually, Robin was able to push X back. As they exited the mountains and returned to the flat, desert landscape, the two exchanged kicks and shoves as best as they could while on their bikes. Neither would be able to kick the other off balance, Robin knew, but it distracted X enough for Robin to get ahead of him, closer to Ding Dong Daddy and the briefcase.

"You didn't think I planned on making this easy for you?" Red X shouted over the roar of their rotating wheels, once again drifting toward Robin for more close quarters combat.

The Boy Wonder was getting jaded with X's interference. Robin took out one of his extendable staffs, clubbing at X. It hit against a red wrist blade, and they began to trade slashes, though the cuts on Robin's stuff were more evident than any damage Robin inflicted on X.

Ding Dong Daddy had a megaphone and seemed to like to provide commentary with it, as he called excitedly to the teens, "Cool moves! That cat's a blast!"

The momentary diversion allowed X to cut Robin's staff in half. Red X took the lead again.

"Why are you doing this?" Robin questioned his opponent. "You're only helping Ding Dong Daddy get away."

"You've got it all wrong, kid," X scoffed, once again acting like he was older than Robin. "Whatever happens in between, my endgame is only helping myself." He snapped his fingers to the car ahead of them. "That case is up for grabs, and I'm gonna grab it."

What else was Robin expecting from him? "The case means nothing to you. It's only valuable to me."

That was a lie. It belonged to Gotham's Boy Wonder and the leader of the Teen Titans. Why else would Ding Dong Daddy have stolen it? If the apprentice to the world's greatest detective was desperate to get the case back, there was something worthwhile to any criminal in it.

"I wouldn't be so sure," X unknowingly agreed with Robin's thoughts, nodding to the road behind them.

There was a large haze of fumes clouding the horizon. Soon, vehicles of different shapes and sizes made themselves visible. Each one was not like the other, each in different colors and equipped with unique attachments. It looked like half of the Titans' rogue gallery; Johnny Rancid, Dr. Light, Mad Mod, and more; showed up to join the race.

"I can think of quite a few people that might like to buy it off me when I win."

_As if I'll let you_.

Explosions caused Robin and Red X to reel back. Ding Dong Daddy chucked dozens of small black balls that combusted on impact with the ground. They veered around them, keeping to the road as their bikes weren't properly fortified to ride on dunes of sand.

Robin let X get ahead of him again. X gave him a haughty look, seeing the ball thrown his way two seconds too late.

_Idiot_.

In the aftermath of the ensuing smoke, the X-Cycle rolled to its side and into the sand, parts of it breaking off. Robin kept his hold on X's arm firm, allowing him to take a seat behind the Titan on his undamaged bike. X kept his face away from his rescuer, as did Robin to the scoundrel.

Red X was mad, disgruntled, Robin knew. He was being too reckless. A part of Robin felt disheartened how easily X could have been killed right then and there, all in the hopes of selling an orphan's personal possessions.

"Saving me was a mistake," X grumbled. Robin ignored him. According to the map, the finish line was coming close. He wasn't sure where the rest of the Titans were, but he did hear thunder of the cars rapidly approaching after him.

X was a quiet before shortly asking, "The briefcase really means that much to you?" The voice filter was too familiar. It sounded too much like Robin's own, a constant reminder of what could have been, with X, with Slade.

"You have no idea," Robin answered resolutely.

Something snapped, or cracked. In the corner of Robin's vision, he saw an arm flexing. "Then go get it." X hopped off the bike, and Robin watched him fizzle out of existence. He reappeared amongst the rogues. A series of crashes and explosions followed soon after.

_A mistake helping fix a mistake_, Robin thought fleetingly, boosting his bike to catch up with the fat man who stole his precious mementos. _Oh the irony_.

X

Red X dropped through the sunroof of a familiar pink limousine. He relaxed himself on the lush leather seat.

"X! What are you doing?" Kitten shrieked. Fang had a look of disbelief, hard to convey with his spider face and blank red eyes.

"Send me the repair bill," X said, allowing his wrist blades to expand and spin in two circles. He cut the vehicle into two halves, teleporting away before the wreckage fully fell through.

They were going to be pissed about this later. Kitten would especially be mad at her boyfriend since Fang was the one that told X about this whole race. Red X made a mental note to set up the double date she wanted sooner than expected.

X appeared in front of Gizmo's car, which was just a giant hamster ball inside of a giant tire. The kid inside startled backwards, his back hitting his seat.

"Whose side are you on, barf brain?!" the kid squealed, shaking a fist in anger.

"Mine!" X set an explosive letter on the glass and teleported away, off to deal with the rest of the villain fest. He could hear Gizmo screech as he coasted off-road with some debris.

The last object on the list was that weird-ass school bus with a red rocket strapped on the top. Red X has seen weirder, though, and landed on its roof without hesitation.

He placed his head over the windshield to frighten the driver. He succeeded, despite the driver not being the person he expected to be.

Starfire and Raven both shrieked at X's unexpected entrance. Raven, at the driver's seat, recovered first and planted her elbow on the dashboard. She let her cheek rest on her fist, giving the thief a sullen look.

"Need a lift?" the girl asked sardonically. X couldn't help but to snicker. A pile of D-list bad guys were unconscious at the other end of the bus.

"Sure," X answered, teleporting inside and rematerializing in the middle of vehicle. "I'm not here to fight," X said, placing his hands up to placate a battle-ready Starfire, green eyes glowing in the air-conditioned quarters.

"Your bike's wrecked," Raven said as the bus passed the pieces of what used to be the X-Cycle.

"I noticed. I'm out of the race, but that doesn't mean I can't cut my losses and save what I can." The thief nodded back to the batch of villains, each dressed in a conspicuous costume. "Just here to loot what the D-listers have, not to get into a brawl with you ladies. No harm, no foul."

"You are a villainous criminal!" Starfire objected. "You should not –"

"Steal from other 'villainous criminals'?" X finished, slowly backing away towards the bodies. "The only reason I'm still here is 'cause your precious Robbie pulled me out of that crash with my bike. I took out the rest of the baddies in the race for him. Let me get some compensation, and then we'll be square."

Starfire was ready to attack, but Raven stopped her. "Let him go, Starfire. We're not here for him, anyway." The brooding girl didn't bother to glance at him.

Slowly, the green energy dissipated. The alien Titan was still giving X a dirty look, but X was unbothered and turned to salvage what he could.

"Red X," Starfire pronounced slowly, "why are you a thief when you are as capable as a hero?"

X didn't look up as he picked up a sciencey-looking rifle. It wasn't Red X's first appeal to reform, of course. "There's better pay, for one thing," X replied.

"You have allied with us before."

"And during those times, I had something to gain." A finger tapped the crimson X on the mask. "I'm a thief sweetheart, through and through. If you're thinking of turning me to the light side, you'll be disappointed."

A pause. "The… light side?"

X ignored the question. "Speaking of which, when are you kiddies going to head back home? Jump just isn't the same without you." He caught a pair of dark purple eyes staring at him through the rear-view mirror.

"We don't have time for petty thieves like you," Raven said flatly. "We're fighting war criminals and terrorists, at the moment."

Red X whistled mockingly. "Really? Pretty ambitious for a couple of cosplay wannabes."

"Yes, a bunch of cosplay wannabes who beat Slade, the entirety of the H.I.V.E. Academy, and the devil incarnate itself. We are _way _out of our league dealing with bitter old men and women out to take over the world."

Filching some cash off the bodies along with a neat-looking knife, X shrugged. "Fair enough. Just don't get too carried away. Let us petty thieves run wild, who knows, maybe we'll be tomorrow's war criminals and terrorists." If it could have been seen, he would have winked. As it was, he pressed a button on his belt. "Been a pleasure, ladies. Tell Robin we're even, for now." And he teleported away.

X

**_A Few Days Later..._**

_**H.I.V.E. Tower…**_

Let no man, woman, or child anywhere in the world accuse Billy Numerous of being only and simply a blind, illiterate hillbilly. Lord knows how many people have made that claim, but at the end of the day, it was Billy who was still standing… the Teen Titans, the occasional police officer, and a particular thief notwithstanding.

Sure, Billy could come across as an idiot. Was that so wrong? He could literally be in a million places at once. With that kind of omnipresence, Billy's power rivaled that of the aforementioned Lord himself! Why shouldn't Billy be so smug?

But yes, being Numerous on his own isn't enough. Smugness becomes arrogance, arrogance leads to mistakes, yadda yadda yadda; all those things they teach you at the H.I.V.E. Academy. That was why Billy joined up with the school, so he could learn a better way to enjoy a life of superpowered crime.

Yet here they were, the H.I.V.E. Five, Academy graduates, scrounging for the scraps, just to survive.

"Hey Billy," See-More greeted as he walked down the hallway. Two water bottles were in his hands. "Whatcha doing out here? I thought you were back in the infirm –"

"Do you know what Boss Lady's doing right now, See-More?" Billy interrupted, not looking up from where he leaned against the wall. "She's tearing up all the punching bags and sparing dummies in the gym. For how long? Since morning." The sun was starting to set though the window across from the teens.

"I know," See-More nodded. "That's why I'm bringing her some water, and –"

"Forget about your damn romance for a second." Billy popped off the wall and blocked See-More's path. "That's all you've been doing all week, trying to drop Jinx's cherry. Know what Mammoth's been doing? Binge watching a sitcom marathon. Gizmo when he got back from that race? Drinking all the soda while he's surfing them Internets. And Kyd Wykkyd? What else? Brooding, but he's looking through his and Angel's old photo album."

Ignoring the vague blush on his face, See-More shook his head and crossed his arms. Billy was never usually this hostile, but See-More wouldn't be intimidated. "Is there somewhere you're going with this, Billy?"

"Partner," Billy snarled, "what our little ol' team is doing right now is kicking back and giving up. Everyone's saying game over, we've lost, and that it just ain't worth it to get back out there again and take over the world."

"Giving up?" See-More's frown deepened. "What are you talking about? Red X _did _kick our asses, but we're just licking our wounds. Next time, we're going to find a way to –"

"To what? Beat X? And then what?" Billy forcefully swiped a water bottle off of See-More's hand, flinging it against the window to bust open the cap and spread water across the hall. "Why does he still matter?" Billy said angrily. "We joined up with Jinx because she said, in her words, that we were going to become big. We were going to become big, rich, powerful, and the whole cahoot, but we're still tripping over our own feet trying to get this guy."

"He's humiliated us," See-More pointed out, standing tall to rival Billy's stance. "We're just trying to pay him back."

"Wounded pride and all," Billy relented, "but if there's one thing my ma and pa taught me that I know is true, is that a little humility gives you perspective. From my eyes, See-More, we're still fightin' and losin' against X because Boss Lady can't take a joke."

See-More took a step forward, oversized eye glaring at his supposed friend. "What did you say? You're saying it's Jinx's fault that –"

"That we're still 'licking our wounds' like a pack of rats? Yeah! All she's been caring about is getting revenge and gettin' an ego boost. I _know_ you've seen her, See-More. She literally gets off of sadism and abuse, and when she isn't gettin' enough of it, she gets obsessive and ignores everything damn else thing around her." Billy waved his hand around, unintentionally motioning to the puddle beside them. "You're trying to get into her pants, but she's supposed to be our leader, and she hasn't even looked us in the eye the entire week. Gave no orders, no info, no plans, no nothing."

Billy held up a hand, stopping See-More from opening his mouth. "Defend your dream girlfriend all you want, but you're a smart guy, See. You know I'm right."

No matter how much See-More wanted to counter Billy's assertions, he reluctantly had to concede. See-More could see more than just what he could with his namesake. Despite his admiration for Jinx, See-More knew she had her faults, obvious or otherwise.

"That doesn't make Jinx any less our friend," See-More finally said.

"… Maybe. Just remember that Jinx promised to lead _all _of us a shot at bigtime, and I haven't seen any darn thing that's any close to a life like that."

Billy walked pass See-More and down the hall, letting one-eye think things over.

The H.I.V.E. Five was a fun little hobby, but if all they were gonna do was go at it with Red X, Billy Numerous was better off on his own, lIke always.

X

**_Elsewhere..._**

Three months of work down the fucking drain.

Red X was going to have to tap deep into his cash reserves if he wanted to fix up his bike. Thank god the software was still salvageable. Everything else, though, was in dire need of repair and replacement.

After X had commandeered that farmer's pickup truck from the race track, he drove the stolen vehicle with his bike's remains in the back to the nearest motel to spend the night. X used the truck to tow the broken bike parts all the way back to Jump. Spike's garage was a no-go, not with those damn, dirty cops out and about. So, X decided to pay a visit to another less-than-respectable mechanic in town.

But X had to remove the X on the X-Cycle and dress into his civvies before approaching their shop. There were only a handful of people X trusted to know the face behind the mask, and the mechanic Red X had to visit could only be trusted as much as you pay him.

That was the problem with masks. You can't be the exact same person when you put one on. Another character has to take over your body, and you have to play the role to a complete tee. The point of the darn thing was to hide the face underneath. And unless you know by heart who the person behind the mask is and who the person the mask is, the mask becomes meaningless.

Red X was a smug bastard who steals shiny toys and pebbles. His civilian persona was also pretty smug, but his number one priority was keeping his head down. Luckily, juggling between those masks was easy because they weren't so different.

It did get hard, though, sometimes.

For example, Red X really owed Sammy and Cash, the guys who had the "bright" idea of stealing the T-Car a year or two back, some payback for the botched job last year. X spent nearly an entire month on the run when he took the blame. However, civilian Red X really wanted his new bike spruced up, and Cash was the only one who he could go to.

The pair of car hijackers were the best in the business, second only to Spike and X.

To be honest, X would have shipped Sammy off to social services and Cash and his "too-cool-for-school" act into juvenile hall. Damn shame the Titans let the two keep their shop open. Sure, willing and reliable informants can be hard to come by, but that didn't make the pair any less annoying.

But the second X swerved the truck around the corner, he knew something was off.

Sammy and Cash had set up their business in the slums of Jump. While most were under the misconception that this part of town was the abandoned warehouse district, the fact was that not a lot of people went out on the streets in this neighborhood. It had less to do with the occasional gangs that popped up every now and then; it had more to do with the general mentality that folks could get away with crime around these particular parts, outright publically or otherwise.

But there was more activity in the streets than usual. More people tend to roam the streets in the daylight, but the passerby seemed to be collectively running toward something. Probably another crime scene being scoped by the cops, or some homeless troop putting up another show to make some cash. X didn't pay much attention to them, at least until he turned a corner to the gas station where Sammy and Cash had their private shop set up.

Police had the place surrounded like fleas leeching off a dog. Yellow tape and barricades were set up practically all around the gas station. A crowd of civilians was brewing, some cops trying to veer traffic away from the debacle. X rolled up his window to block all the yelling and honking. As he drove pass the station, however, he narrowed his eyes at what he saw.

The new blood in town, Yin and Bennet, walked right out of the station's garage. They were flanked by two police officers, but all four of them encircled two kids in handcuffs. Cash, the brat just starting middle school, and Sammy, the _Grease_ wannabe, were in friggin' handcuffs and being escorted into a cop car.

Yin and Bennet were going to be at odds with the Titans when the kids finally come back home, no doubt about it. The Titans always had a soft spot for anyone under the age of eighteen. That was partly why they let Sammy and Cash do their own thing for the most part, as long as the brats didn't do anything "too" illegal. The new cops obviously didn't have the same sentiment.

Red X discreetly made his way out of the area. Maybe some appropriate jail time would teach Sammy and Cash not to be so careless when dealing with the criminal underworld. Since Cash was unavailable to repair the X-Cycle, X opted to hide the bike in one of the abandoned warehouses and get it fixed at a later date.

Red X didn't have to get involved in any of that goodie-goodie tussle, the argument on ethics and morality the capes and cops seem to have almost every other year. No, there'd be no easy pickings for X during a mess like that. Both heroes and cops would just team up to take a thieving Red X down to kiss and make up.

Well, maybe X wouldn't have to teach the H.I.V.E. Five from right and wrong anymore. At this rate, they'd be jailed soon enough with such proactive coppers taking the charge.

In the coming days, Red X would probably do best to hang up the mask for a while. He's already had his fun with Miss Fortune and her band of misfits, after all, and it'd be neat to see if X's teachings have helped them better prepare for the real world. Yin and Bennet would certainly be willing test proctors, whether they know it or not.

Red X was a thief, and he was also a troll and a deceiver.

His other mask, the civilian one with the clean crime record and the cute girlfriend, didn't have to lie like it was second nature or teach some brats important life lessons. He had to hide things, sure, but he got to live the closest thing to a "normal" life.

He didn't say anything out loud to anyone, but X was wondering which mask was more fun to wear and which mask was worth it.


End file.
